To mark the start of the new millennium, the Yokohama 2001 Organizing Committee (representing the Japan Foundation, the city of Yokohama, the Japan Public Broadcasting Corporation (NHK), and the Asahi Shimbun newspaper) is presenting a major international art exhibition, Yokohama 2001. It will be a triennale, a large-scale contemporary art show to be held every three years. Many people both inside and outside Japan have been hoping for many years that such an event would be organized here, and this dream is finally close to realization.

This first of a series of exhibitions will run from September 2 (Sunday) through November 11 (Sunday) in the year 2001 at the wharf side development known as Minato Mirai 21 in the middle of Yokohama. One hundred artists invited from around the world will present a diverse selection of painting, sculpture, photography, film, installations, and other forms of art that represent the cutting edge of contemporary art. Taking advantage of the charming atmosphere of the port city of Yokohama, the main portion of the exhibition will be housed in the Pacifico Yokohama Exhibition Hall and Warehouse No. 1, a historic red-brick building, outdoor sculpture will be set up in the vicinity of these buildings, and local galleries will be encouraged to present related exhibitions. The four artistic directors, who have been put in charge of selecting the theme of the exhibition and the participating artists, are: Kohmoto Shinji, chief curator at the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, Tatehata Akira, a professor, at Tama Art University, Nakamura Nobuo, director of the Contemporary Art Center (CCA) Kitakyushu, and Nanjo Fumio, an independent curator. They have chosen the general theme "MEGA WAVE - Towards a New Synthesis -" with the aim of developing a new and more comprehensive vision of art for the future, a vision that creates a closer relationship between art and society. Under this theme, the directors hope to bring together artists and experts in other fields from around the world to jointly explore the possibilities of true creativity from a broad perspective transcending national or disciplinary boundaries. A variety of symposiums, workshops, and other events will be held in conjunction with the exhibition, creating forums in which artists and representatives of other fields, art lovers and the general public, can meet in a festive atmosphere to conduct meaningful dialogs.